The Tale of the Dove and the Orphan (Completed 2017)

Chapter Nine

Neji checked her pulse and hesitantly pressed his head up against her chest. 'SHE'S DYING,' the voice cackled.

Neji forced himself to ignore the voice, knowing that it wasn't true. His nose suddenly caught a horrid scent coming from Tenten's breath.

It reeked and caused him to tilt his head back.

The scent also warned him of danger.

'Danger from what,' he thought. It was right then and there that it hit him; Tenten had eaten the fish from the river.

Neji panicked and checked her forehead and pulse. She was already sweating.

Added to the fact that she had barely eaten in the past two days, she had also worried about Neji too much for her health.

He had eaten the fish once before, and it had disastrous consequences later on. He had gotten a fever for almost three days, not to mention he had poisoned his system and almost caused a lung to collapse.

But Tenten's situation was worse, and if he didn't get her to a doctor on time, she wouldn't see the light of day.

Neji placed his forehead on hers, quickly trying to decide on what to do. He still couldn't see. He was so close to being fully healed however, but he couldn't risk letting her stay in the condition she was in for fifteen minutes.

With a grunt, Neji stood up with Tenten in his arms, struggling to even start walking with such a weight in his arms.

Eventually, Neji could walk properly and tried to run.

Several times he almost tripped and fell; about five when he almost dropped Tenten. He was running out of breath too easily, and all he could count on were his hearing and smell.

Tenten was so limp in his arms; it felt like he was carrying a dead body.

'YOU'VE KILLED HER. YOU SHOULD'VE LEFT HER IN THE CARE OF HER ACTUAL FRIENDS.'

Neji grit his teeth and did his best to ignore the voice for his and Tenten's sake.

However, the more the voice talked, the more Neji was convinced it was his fault. And maybe, just maybe, it was.

'YOU'RE THE ONE WHO BROUGHT HER THERE. NO OTHER CLOTHES, NO FOOD, NO WATER. SHE'LL DIE BECAUSE OF YOU NOW.'

Neji blinked away tears and held Tenten tighter; his legs moving faster than his mind. At that point, he didn't even worry about which way he was going; he simply worried about if he'd make it or not. If she'd make it or not.

'I've hurt her so much,' he thought, his breathing quickening, 'I've hurt her in every way. I don't deserve her. I don't deserve Tenten. But Kami, I beg of you. Just don't take her away! I'd rather be apart from her than letting her die!'

Neji was sprinting as he usually would on a mission, which cut the time to get to the gates in half. When he smelled the scents of others, he almost cried.

They were so close!

In his hastiness, he tripped over a log and fell, turning so his back would hit the ground. They landed with a "THUMP!" and Tenten fell out of his arms.

Fearing the worst, Neji quickly and painfully got up and checked her, only to find that she had no gashes or bruises.

Lifting her up once more, Neji started to run only to find his ankle was in pain. Serious pain. Neji grunted and did his best to run, but it was a fruitless task.